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after an 1800 kilometer flight I'm back in Kuala lumper for the final day of my Malaysian Great Escape the executive chef I met at the beginning of my trip has entered me into a national cooking competition this will be a very public test today's the first time when I'll have a chance to sort of bring all that experience across the week together onto one plate I've got to grips with the fragmented style there holds strong Chinese influence strong Indian influence and of course at the core a traditional Malaysian style so way tough because there's textures heat sour sweetness forget it all right all three balances the competition's taking place in one of Cal's most prestigious hotels and that's also home to one of the country's leading catering skills today's when your recipe will be taught to the next generation of professional chefs back in 1992 for national chef of the year yeah I definitely want to come last but I wouldn't mind winning I spent the last week playing sous chef to some of Malaysia's toughest auntie's but today I'm cooking my own Malaysian recipes head-to-head against five of the country's best female cooks how are you yeah they're each famous for a different style of Malaysian fusion cuisine it smells amazing Wow watching very closely oh yeah thank you so today you have to prepare the coconut rice at the same time you can prepare three side dishes today we have forages for your event and then I'm will be take care for the kitchen operations cool thank you the best auntie wait thank you we need to prepare traditional Malaysian coconut rice and three side dishes of our choice I'm starting with a Chinese chicken dish inspired by the Executive Chefs month that I met at the beginning of the week so no marinated chicken first is the Chinese influence chicken capita soy sauce Chiqui competent on this way just see it off the chicken and let it sit in that soy sauce flavors it inside which is nice it's cooked on the bone so should be a lot of tuna I've noticed that the auntie's are paying special attention to one dish in particular you starting to cook your rice now why so early you're not telling me okay what I'm amazed that everyone's starting to steam their rice there's over two now has to go and put the rice on already only takes 20 minutes to cook the rice is going on that early for reasons so can't beat them join them and about three minutes time I'll be putting my rice on but first I need to get my second dish started of my take on the traditional Malaysian slow-cooked beef rendang I was taught by our Nene throwing down I've just cubed it so I've got a bit texture and they won't bite through it anti Lee's restaurant she sliced it a little bit too thin so they lost that texture bite finally be nice this break and coconut rice should be the easy bit coconut milk in some lemongrass slice the tops and smash the bottoms I've never used a rice cooker before but all the auntie's are using them I'm following their lead and on just a button I hope the fucking best okay Fandango Juicin chickens fine Weiss is on he is busy yeah but I don't see anything like you know the Malaysian Asian is he doing something like Western why bang bang let's come down there that's much better exactly the way I want you to there's so many things on the go I was like breastfeeding five babies at the same time chicken beef rice but the one thing that should be a doddle could prove to be my undoing that's fucked that shit did you wash your eyes you didn't wash it and how do you sing before it's just uh automating you just living on your cook wait sir why is done overcooked you put the coconut milk in yours as well yes yes but I think I might have spotted the anti secret she got herself a Ferrari of rice cookers my rice themo cook too quickly and you have another one in case that's faulty but one like that with a digital phone on it I'm not blaming the tools but it just you know it cooked too fast it's mushy at the bottom and raw at the top thank you very much now you be the posh one in rice kneel down not taking any chances now this time I'm going belt embraces doing a backup batch in my flashy new rice cooker with minutes to go I'm racing to get finished my final dish is an indie inspired from Currie like the veggie meal I cooked for the prime minister shrimps fried really quickly and then finished inside the light coconut curry now I've got to hope these dishes work together nice five more minutes I'll go I'll go I got two minutes to serve this thing I'm fucked I'm serving my rice wrapped in a banana leaf alongside traditional Malaysian garnishes Malaysia's love their food spicy so I'm just hoping that this might be enough and to go with the rice my three side dishes every plate individual numbered so the judges can't tell who's cooked what you drop this tray I'll hang you upside down by your balls from the Petronas Towers I figure don't sneeze the foods going out to a restaurant packed with Kuala Lumpur's leading restauranteurs and food critics but the people who really matter tonight other judges 5 Malaysian chefs from some of the country's leading restaurants they'll be judging each of my recipes on texture and taste and they'll expect all of the dishes to come together to create a balance of flavors and a harmonious meal very mild even not subtle but then together we complement each other time to find out if I've managed to beat the Malaysian artis at their own game we now have the third prize it's number five Norma's won and the second prize goes to thank you very much Wow I'll risk upon my family its bit laughs with the Hat for your family nice well done number one answer humble question I want to come back next year to take your crown auntie yes okay a week ago I had only ever tried a couple of Malaysian dishes but I'm leaving with a new understanding of one of the world's most unusual fusion cuisines and it's quite awkward to begin with because I struggle to get my head around it because I couldn't understand that strong Chinese influence and then the Indian influence and then what is Malaysian cooking them and it was a combination of all three so that's what I've been struggling with and it took me to the end of the week to come to terms with that because when you taste it the first time Wow the penny drops you think Jesus that is extraordinary stay close to your auntie because that's better civilized fucking amazing
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lmao i love Gordon. there's something about his never-ending drive that's so admirable. he's harsh because he loves food so much and wants to win so badly. homeboy would enter a kids competition and try his best if it meant him being a better cook.

I learned how to cook rice from my Japanese roommate in college, in a pot, not a rice cooker. But in years since I’ve had several high tech rice cookers. Even the cheap ones do OK. When I saw Gordon open the top though I thought, “Nope, just leave it alone chef.” I think that’s what ruined the rice with his first batch.

They’re great machines. Foreigners in Japan get very innovative with them, including me. This was the first time I’ve seen people in another country putting anything but just rice in the rice cooker, whereas foreigners in Japan tend to treat them like rice cookers / crock pots. I put meat, vegetables, and curry in mine with the rice. I’m no gourmet though, so I thought that might be all wrong, until I saw what these Malaysians were doing.

This is what I like about Gordon, there are vast amounts of foods that are waiting for them to get cooked. Even if you are a celebrity chef or a professional, there is always room for something to discover.